How to Grow Fingerling Salad Potatoes in Pots

Slice the seed potatoes into sections. Look for the eyes or dimples on the seed potato where a new shoot grows. As you cut it into pieces, make sure each piece has at least two eyes. Set the sections on a flat surface to dry for two days.

Select containers at least 12 inches deep and 12 inches wide. Up to two potatoes can grow in a 12 inch wide container. The container must have at least three drain holes on the bottom or low on the container’s sides. Good drainage is critical for growing fingerling potatoes in pots.

Mix together equal parts potting soil and potting compost until it is thoroughly blended. Add water to the mix until it feels crumbly but not muddy in your hand.

Spread a 4 inch thick later of the potting compost and soil mix over the pot’s bottom. If you are using a deeper pot, add enough soil mix to bring the level up to 8 inches below the pot’s lip.

Place two seed potato sections 6 inches apart on the potting soil with the eye facing up. For larger containers, plant multiple seed potato sections 6 to 12 inches apart.

Add 6 inches of soil over the top of the fingerling salad potato sections. Watering the pot settles the soil. Thoroughly dampen the mix evenly throughout the pot.

Add soil to the pot when the first shoots emerge bringing the soil level up to just above the tip of the new growth. Gradually bring the level of the soil up to one-half inch below the top of the pot covering the shoots as they emerge.

Water the fingerling potatoes when the top of the soil starts drying out. Soak the pot at each watering and let it thoroughly drain.

Add fertilizer in late spring after the foliage develops with a balanced 10-10-10 fertilizer. Use a water-soluble fertilizer and add it to one of the waterings for even distribution.